Crate Games Question

[Justrace]

My copy of crate games arrived tonight I'm really looking forward to starting it. But have a few questions that are probably really silly but here goes.

Murphy sleeps in his crate at night and hubby lets him out to go the toilet in the morning, around 5.30, lets him play or he puts himself back to bed when he comes back in. Sometimes Murphy is really reluctant to get up (despite having a massive wee & poo once he goes out) so hubby normally bribes him. How is this going to work once I have started the crate games?

Should hubby not open the door until he is sitting when letting him out in the morning? I was going to suggest that he uses the same release word.

I do have another crate that I have for the car that I can do the games in, until we really have the hang of it, if that will help.

Also the crate that he sleeps in we have across ways, rather than long ways. I was planning on doing the games with the crate long ways, but will it be confusing with the one that he sleeps in to be going across??

Sorry if they are really silly questions, for some reason they are really confusing me and I'm worried that I might muck it all up with having different things going on.

Thanks in advance

[J...]

What do you want to achieve with your Crate Games?

I've done it with all 3 of my dogs, one as a mature age, two as babies when they came home.

I do it because it teaches good control behaviour (so reliable start lines) but also makes the crate a good place for them to be when out and about trialling, or travelling.

With my 7 month old BC I didn't do the strict CGs, I just applied the principles of it to real life. He was already comfortable in a crate when I got him from the breeder. Every night we played a round of running to his crate, rewarding, releasing, rewarding, back in the crate, rewarding and then finally bed time (in varying degrees!). Each morning we would play a quick game of self-control where I opened his crate and then worked through higher levels of distraction as he got better at it, obviously for plenty of good rewards when he was successful.

He is now very comfy in his crate out and about, he's been sleeping out of it since he was 4.5 months. At trials or training etc he will run to his crate on cue, and I can drive him into his crate from 50 or so metres away. He is still rewarded for running in there when asked, and waiting nicely when I open the door. He has the best crate games out of the lot in terms of driving into it, but still lacks the self-control of my mature dogs (hardly surprising for a drivey 7 mo BC). I do need to work more on his self-control and I will do that using CGs.

[Justrace]

yes it's the self/impulse control that I really want to work on, as well as the recalls and looking more to me. He loves his crate already, I just though it would be a fun way of training. He seems to be the dog that you give an inch & he takes a mile - but he's only just gone 5 months old

[skip]

If you are saying he is sound asleep in the morning and gets woken up to get taken outside...... I'd probably get your hubby to say the same release word and get him up. I don't think I'd use food rewards though in this instance. Interested in what others say as this is an interesting question which never faced me.

This made me think of something I learnt recently. When you are teaching others or your own young dog maybe to wait for rewards like food, games like Your Choice, and sometimes food is accidentally dropped. It was suggested if the food falls and the inexperienced dog is going to get it before you can stop them. Just give the command to "get it" or whatever your release word is.The dog still gets the food you didn't mean to drop but at least the training is consistent.

Good luck with it

[Agility Dogs]

IMO the same rules need to apply. You touch the front of the crate it means something good is going to happen and the dog needs to sit in the back of the crate (or whatever criteria you choose) and wait to be released. If touching the front of the crate gets no reaction you walk away and start again.

Until your pup really gets the game I'd remain consistent. Once it's a really solid behaviour I think you can afford to be a bit more relaxed, but there will still be fall out, even if it is small. (I see it with my guys when I'm not 100% onto it.)

:)

[Mrs Rusty Bucket]

If the dog goes in the crate of his own accord - different rules apply and he can self release...

If you sent him to the crate with a crate command word/phrase then he's only allowed out when he meets the criteria for release...

Dogs do understand different contexts... I have vastly different criteria for the crate in the corner inside at home, than the one outside at training...

One thing I am consistent about no matter where the crate is - if I need to shut the dog in the crate (and I really should do this at home more often - just for practice) - the evil hound is not getting out if she's barking. I will only go over to cover the crate up.

Note - if you're using a wire crate for barking dog, you may need to put some cardboard over the top that keeps the cover away from the top and the sides of the crate so evil hound cannot pull the cover in and rip it to shreds in her frustration.